Palladium nanoparticles supported on exfoliated g-C3N4 as efficient catalysts for selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol by molecular oxygen

Abstract

Liquid-phase selective oxidation of alcohols using molecular oxygen as an oxidant is a promising and sustainable strategy for the manufacture of aldehydes or ketones. The supported noble metal nanoparticles have been widely recognized as the most efficient catalysts for the process. Herein, exfoliated graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄) materials were prepared and utilized as catalyst supports to load palladium nanoparticles. The physical–chemical properties of the synthesized Pd/eg-C₃N₄ were analyzed by various characterization techniques including XRD, TG, TEM, FT-IR, UV-vis, XPS, etc. In the selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol, the Pd/eg-C₃N₄ materials demonstrated high and steady catalytic activities, depending on the chemical valences of the supported Pd species. Furthermore, the interaction between Pd and nitrogen of g-C₃N₄ and the catalytically active sites is discussed.